


Jugheads Crown

by imaginationart



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: ElementarySchool, F/M, asperusual, bettybeinganangel, bughead - Freeform, cherylandjasonandreggiearemeaninthissorry, jugheadscrown, kevinandjugheadbeingprotectiveofbetty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-18
Updated: 2017-02-18
Packaged: 2018-09-25 10:17:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9815285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginationart/pseuds/imaginationart
Summary: An imagining of how Jughead got his crown beanie.Set in Grade 2.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by a post I saw which was debating over the cutest ways for Jughead to get his crown and I got strangely attached to the idea of Betty making him it.
> 
> (I wrote this between doing several big projects for school so go easy on my writing).
> 
> Also, I'm English so I have no idea how school or soccer works in America so I hope I didn't get any part of it wrong.

By the time he reaches second grade, there are three prominent facts about Jughead Jones.

The first, is that Archie Andrews is his best friend, the second, is that he has a soft spot for Betty Cooper, and the third, is that he always wears a paper crown.

To even a total outsider, the first is obvious, as despite their differences, Archie and Jughead are completely inseparable. As for the third, you would have to have known Jughead for at least a week before you realise his paper crown is much more than just an odd accessory he sometimes wears.

But his soft spot for Betty Cooper? For that you would have to have a real grasp on Jugheads personality. You would have to understand that Jughead didn’t really talk to girls – not because he hated them – but because he didn’t understand them, in a different way to him not understanding Archie. You would have to know, that the reason why Cheryl Blossom had shoulder length hair currently was not because she chose to, but because she once made Betty cry, so when they were all sitting on the floor as Miss Frasier read them a story, Jughead took the opportunity to reach up and snip off a chunk of her hair. You would have to know that when he got suspended for a week because of it, he still walked with Betty to and from the school, so she wouldn’t have to walk alone as Archie mindlessly threw himself at a different girls’ feet each day.

You would have to know that Jughead barely ever showed affection, but when he rarely did, it was always directed at Betty Cooper.

With these three facts being stated, it was a Friday when each of them came into play.

Archie had joined Reggie, Moose and Jason in a game of soccer, and as Jughead watches from the side lines, his paper crown slightly misplaced, he chews his sandwich, not hearing Betty and Kevin Keller approach, until they plop themselves down on the bench next to him.  For a while, the three of them sat in silence, each of their eyes fixed on the soccer game, except for Bettys, whose were transfixed by the group of girls that Cheryl Blossom was leading in a cheer routine to support her brother.

She sighs dreamily, “I wish Cheryl would let me join in…”

Jughead takes another bite of his sandwich, to prevent himself from storming up to Cheryl and demanding that Betty would be allowed to join.

Kevin, who could be just as protective of Betty as Jughead, frowns, “Well, you’ve never tried asking her…”

Jughead gulps his sandwich down hastily, “Because she knows she’d say no! Because Cheryl is a – a – a”, his eyes flicker around frantically, before he lowers his voice to a whisper, “ _bitch_.”

Bettys eyes widen comically, as a few strands of her golden hair fall out of her current pigtails, “Juggie! She’s not very kind, but she might, she might…” She trails off, clearly trying to think of one good thing Cheryl has ever done, “She might have a reason for it!”

Jughead smiles at her reaction, his paper crown flopping down into his eyes as he speaks, whilst Betty instinctively reaches up to fix his askew crown. “What do you think her reason is then, Betts?”

Bettys mouth drops, and for a while she remains indecisive, opening and shutting it like a guppy, “She might have accidentally trodden on her pet tarantula, and now she’s mad because it’s dead!”

She seems happy with this response, beaming at him triumphantly. Kevin chuckles loudly from next to her, “Okay Betty, I’ll ask if I can join in the soccer game, and if they say yes, then you ask Cheryl if you can join in the cheering.”

For a moment, Jughead thinks Betty is going to say no, but then she smiles and nods at Kevin, “Sure okay, what’s the harm in that?”

As they walk up to the four playing soccer, Archie spots them and instantly stops, waving at them, this catches Jason’s eye and as he stops too, Reggie falters, because he had been about to pass Jason the ball but if he wasn’t in position, then something must be wrong, so once he catches sight of the two red heads walking down towards Jughead, Betty and Kevin, he races to catch up. Moose, who hadn’t yet realised that the soccer game had been abandoned, sprinted after Reggie, hoping to tackle him before he freezing, realising Reggie is no longer playing.

As Jughead faces the four, he realises that the reason Kevin’s not saying anything, not because he’s waiting for someone else to start the conversation but because these guys look pretty daunting right now – except for Archie, who’s grinning at the three of them goofily.

Finally, Kevin recollects himself. “Uh, I, um. Can I join?”

Their reactions vary, Archie beams at him, almost instantly about to respond with a definite yes, before Reggie slaps his shoulder, shoving him both backwards, and into silence. Jason’s mouth twitches upwards, as if he finds the question completely hilarious, and Moose looks at Kevin in silent and total admiration, his jaw slacking slightly.

Reggie steps forward, “No.”

Kevin blinks, “But I –”.

“Have you ever loved a girl, Keller? Like your daddy loves your mummy?”

Kevin freezes over, “It’s only second grade…”

Reggie smirks at him, “You can play when you have.”

Jughead explodes, “And how many girls have loved you back, Reggie?”

Reggie lurches forward, “Keep your mouth shut, _freak._ ”

Betty, who had been bawling her fists together during the confrontation and staying quiet, slams her hands against Reggie as he reaches out for Jughead, with such a force that it knocks him backwards, but as he falls, it only takes one of his fingers to catch onto Jughead's crown, to bring it down with him.

The crown was safe from the fall itself, landing comfortably on Reggie’s stomach not venturing anywhere near the mud puddle that Reggie himself was currently squirming in, but, as Jughead looks at Betty with a mixture of awe and affection, he doesn’t notice Reggie sit up straight, and he doesn’t notice his fingers wrap around the crown, and he doesn’t notice Archie cry out and lurch forward, only to get grabbed and held back by Jason Blossom.

But he sure as hell notices Reggie shoving a muddied fist into his vision, before turning it over, and unclenching his hand, revealing the torn-up remnants of Jugheads crown. And he sure as hell notices the wind pick it up and carry it far, far away, from his head.

Jughead felt as if a punch had been delivered to his gut and whilst everything around him blurred, he watched the fragments of his crown get whipped around in the breeze, hardly feeling Kevin guide him away, as a redhead and a blonde sprinted after the pieces, thinking they could stick them back together if they caught them.

For the duration of the weekend, Jughead felt as if he was in a haze, and even when he and Archie sat in his treehouse, and Archie spoke, he hardly heard any of what he was saying.

“Betty thinks it’s her fault.” The redhead says, and when Jughead shows no sign of responding, he continues. “I had to tell her it was Reggie, but she doesn’t believe me.”

Jughead, who despite his current state of sadness, still had a huge soft spot for Betty, found himself speaking, “She didn’t do it.”

Archie took this as a sign that Jughead had completely recovered and went on to blab about Valerie and Josie and any other girl that took his fancy.

By the time Monday rolled around, Jughead sits himself on the bench again at lunchtime, his head feeling strangely naked, without his little paper crown.

Betty sits down next to him, she seems oddly nervous and Jughead has no idea why, after all, it was just him, the same old Jughead. He waited for her to say something.

“Juggie, I’m so, so sorry, if I hadn’t gotten angry, your crown would be okay!” She blurts out, and as he turns his steady gaze onto her, he sees a tear, slip down her cheek. “And, as soon as I got home on Friday, I started working on – why aren’t you eating?”

Jughead glances down at his sandwich, “I’m not hungry right now,” He sees alarm diffuse on her face, after all, it was unheard of that Jughead Jones wasn’t hungry. “Why don’t you tell me what you were working on and then I’ll eat?”

She nods, and her hands continue to play with the grey knitted hat lying on her lap. “As soon as I got home, I started looking for grey wool, because I’ve knitted with my Granny sometimes. And when Polly got home, we found some together and went to Granny’s house, and then we started – we started working on this, and I know it’s not the same but Reggie won’t be able to rip this one up, and when it gets cold it will keep your head warm!”

Bettys eyes had remained fixed on the hat for her whole speech, and Jughead took the time to look at the dark circles underneath her eyes, and he realises just how hard she had worked on it.

“Betty?” He whispers gently. “I love it, thank you so much.”

Bettys blue eyes flicker up to his, “I’m sorry, I got your hat ripped up.” She bites her lip anxiously and shuffled around.

Jughead smiled, “You didn’t, it was Reggie.”

For a moment, she stills completely, and looks at him with a very stoic expression, “Because he’s a _bitch_.” Despite the seriousness in her expression, she still hushes the last word, struggling to speak ill of anyone.

Jughead grins at her, “I don’t know, I think he maybe did me a favour.” He reaches out and pries the crown hat from her hands, “I mean, now I have an even better crown.”

Betty's face breaks into a huge grin, as she throws her arms around him, a hug which Jughead returned with just as much affection, even if he did so slightly hesitantly.

**Author's Note:**

> I would say Riverdale is my guilty pleasure but I don't feel a bit of guilt.


End file.
